Have any of you all had a problem with your leather still being dried out after conditioning them? After I apply the king ranch leather conditioner the seats get hard and very dry. I can write my name in the leather with my finger. Is this normal? I went -and looked at an 05 king ranch f250 and I cant scratch the leather, but in my truck I can write stuff in mine right after conditioning.

 

Sounds like you need to do a deep cleaning of the leather before you apply any more "conditioning" oils. Suggest using a couple of clean white terry cloth towels (bar size) and a very warm water source along with a few "cold ones" nearby. Wring as much water out of the towel best you can and select an area of the leather to start gently rubbing in multiple directions (you can also warm up the leather area to be cleaned with the warm towel) - turning the towel as it discolors from the dirt and oils you are ridding from the leather. You may have to do each area more than once - once it has had time to fully dry. Once you have an area "cleaned" compare what it looks like to the back seat as reference. Also recommend not using an oil on the leather but a crème consistency conditioner and cleaner (my choice: Leather CRP). There are some expensive conditioners to be found (on the internet) if your leather is quite distressed (hard and dried out)that you may wish to try (more money should equal a more complete conditioner - or the use of virgin ingredients (LOL).

Remember to gently clean - takes quite a long time to do each seat (that's what the cold ones are for) but it is well worth the effort. If you choose to use Leather CPR get the largest size you can because you will use quite a bit (working it into the leather using the supplied sponge and your fingers to get to each square inch of the exposed leather)(more than a couple of applications in between a full day or two of absorbing time).

Good luck. If you have a digital camera please take pictures of your seats as they are today and record your progress - would make a great gallery addition.

 

Is it possible to overcondition the seats? I do it twice a month and each time I do it the seats get harder and dryer.

 

The way i clean my seats is i take a bucket and fill it up with some hot water. Then i take a cloth, soak it in the water and rub down the seats to get the dirt out. Once ive cleaned the seats i let them dry out somewhat but not too much so that they are a little moist. Then i take another cloth with some Lexol Leather conditioner and wipe down the seats with that. Ive been doing this for about the last 6 months and my seats look great! Also use a windsheild sun-blocker to prevent fading.

 

How much is too much Lexol? Should I Use it every month, or more often? and what happens if I use it too often or use too much?

 

See my reply in "Lexol Question" thread.

It sounds like you are using conditioner/feed way too often.

It's really not necessary to use it more than every 6 months at the very most.

 

I read about Leather CPR on this site, and haven't used anything else. Everyone has a preference, but I can say whole heartedly this stuff really works! I treat all of the leather about every 4-6 weeks, and the seats look great (even with the Texas sun, although I also use a window shade). I would recommend this to anyone with a KR.

 

Agree with other posts. Sounds like a good cleaning will open up that leather. I have used Zymol leather cleaner on my Carerra. That really worked well. That's also very fine grade leather.
My KR looks and smells great aftr treating with the KR conditioner. It is supple and soft. My advice is to give your seats a good scrub and then rub in the KR. Once every few months is probably enough. Too much of "almost" anything is not good!
Shoot some pictures! We want to see the problem. Maybe that will spark some dialog as well.

 

i went crazy last night and conditioned the seats.

after reading these posts, i noticed more and more how the seats were looking scratched up. and i thouht it was time to nip it in the bud.

so i washed them with a damp cloth, then let them dry. then i started to apply the king ranch brand conditioner. those seats turned dark where the scratches and sweat areas. i hate it when it does that. anyway, i'd done the passenger's side and started on the back seats. i got lazy and put a lot of conditioner on the cloth and started. it looked really good. so, i went liberal on the front. and it did look better. the dark spots were still there, but it looked more even. and it dried pretty nice.

most importantly, it smells fantastic.

 

Anyone use the 'previous' KR conditioner versus the newer version?

It seems that they might have tweaked the formulation?

My biggest peeve on the KR Conditioner was the smell (and they white crystalline residue)-- way too 'chemically'.

RP

 

i don't get any residue...

the smell is pretty good...it drives the cat crazy...

 

What CatNip in the KR Conditioner?
<that's how rumours get started>

 

I'm wondering why the cat is in the KR in the first place! (Leather and claws, oh no!)

 

just the smell on my hands...no animal's getting in my KR!